Tenable vs CrowdStrike Falcon Spotlight -- Vulnerability Management Compared
CrowdStrike Falcon Spotlight takes a fundamentally different approach from Tenable by eliminating traditional scanning entirely, instead leveraging the Falcon EDR agent for scanless vulnerability assessment. This provides real-time vulnerability data with zero scanning overhead, but limits coverage to endpoints with the Falcon agent. Tenable provides far broader asset coverage including network devices, OT systems, and cloud infrastructure, with deeper vulnerability checks and compliance scanning capabilities.
Choose CrowdStrike Falcon Spotlight if you are already a Falcon customer and want scanless vulnerability visibility across managed endpoints with zero additional infrastructure. Choose Tenable if you need comprehensive vulnerability management across all asset types including network devices, cloud infrastructure, and OT systems with deep compliance scanning.
| Feature | CrowdStrike Falcon Spotlight | Tenable |
|---|---|---|
| Scanning Approach | Scanless via EDR agent | Active and agent-based scanning |
| Asset Coverage | Endpoints with Falcon agent only | IT, cloud, OT, containers, web apps |
| Assessment Speed | Real-time continuous | Scheduled or on-demand scans |
| Deployment Overhead | Zero (uses existing agent) | Requires scanner and/or agent deployment |
| Compliance Scanning | Not available | CIS, DISA STIG, PCI DSS |
| Risk Prioritization | ExPRT.AI with threat context | VPR with exploit prediction |
| Network Device Scanning | Not supported | Full network device assessment |
| Threat Correlation | Native EDR threat intelligence | Third-party threat feed integration |
Common questions about choosing between Tenable and CrowdStrike Falcon Spotlight.
CrowdStrike Falcon Spotlight takes a fundamentally different approach from Tenable by eliminating traditional scanning entirely, instead leveraging the Falcon EDR agent for scanless vulnerability assessment. This provides real-time vulnerability data with zero scanning overhead, but limits coverage to endpoints with the Falcon agent. Tenable provides far broader asset coverage including network devices, OT systems, and cloud infrastructure, with deeper vulnerability checks and compliance scanning capabilities.
Choose CrowdStrike Falcon Spotlight if you are already a Falcon customer and want scanless vulnerability visibility across managed endpoints with zero additional infrastructure. Choose Tenable if you need comprehensive vulnerability management across all asset types including network devices, cloud infrastructure, and OT systems with deep compliance scanning.
CrowdStrike Falcon Spotlight pricing: Add-on to CrowdStrike Falcon platform / Custom pricing. Tenable pricing: Nessus Professional from $3,990/year / Tenable.io from $2,275/year (65 assets) / Enterprise custom pricing. CrowdStrike Falcon Spotlight's pricing model is per-endpoint (annual subscription, bundled with falcon), while Tenable uses per-asset (annual subscription) pricing.
Yes, you can migrate from Tenable to CrowdStrike Falcon Spotlight. The migration process depends on your specific setup and the features you use. Both platforms offer APIs that can facilitate automated migration. Consider running both tools in parallel during the transition to ensure zero downtime.
Cloud-native vulnerability management platform with integrated detection, prioritization, and patch management
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ComparisonMicrosoft's built-in vulnerability management integrated with Defender for Endpoint
ComparisonThe most widely used open-source vulnerability scanner with 100,000+ network vulnerability tests
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